Chapter 403: The Unreal and the Real

After the players probed, it was proven that the three Heavenly Kings of Water, Fire, and Gold were indeed not in the Immortal World. Lin Bai cut off the Magpie Bridge leading from Shenmo Dalu to the Immortal World, closing the gate to beat the dog.

Cheng Xunyun was busy deploying intelligence networks across Shenmo Dalu, closely monitoring the movements of various sects.

……

In the Real World, Cheng Xunyun was terrified that the players would act on impulse and do something to anger Lin Bai.

Through various media, she appealed to players to play the game peacefully and cherish their lives.

At the same time, both inside and outside the game, she announced the commencement of player registration, binding game IDs to real-world identities to further exert psychological deterrence upon them.

The official forced pressure caused the players' spirit of resistance to grow increasingly intense.

And so.

More players flooded into the game forums to protest the insecurity of the Game Capsules.

Compared to the players of the Eastern Continent, the players of the Western Continent were slightly better off.

After all.

They had not received missions from the Immortal World, and furthermore, Lin Bai had just launched a massive invasion of Shenmo Dalu; it was the perfect time for them to fish for benefits amidst the chaos...

……

Two days later.

The Knight Orders across Shenmo Dalu, the elven armies, the druids who grazed the forests, and even the Undead Legion spurned by the entire continent, along with the Monsters lurking underground or in the Abyss, gathered rapidly, ready to enter battle at any moment.

The Cultivators who had come to Shenmo Dalu learned of the movements on Shenmo Dalu through the players; one by one, they sharpened their weapons and readied their horses, throwing themselves into intense cultivation and preparing for battle.

Soldier against soldier, general against general—if they couldn't beat the gods, couldn't they at least beat the soldiers below?

The older generation of Cultivators had experienced the Great War of Gods and Demons and were no strangers to war.

War meant resources.

For a long time, the Justice Alliance had not been harsh on the Cultivators below; resources that were once unattainable were now theirs to enjoy, and after joining under Cheng Xunyun, their cultivation speed had even increased by fifty percent.

Everyone was willing to fight for the Alliance.

The younger generation of Cultivators had not experienced the Great War of Gods and Demons, but for nearly a year, the players had occupied too much of their attention.

This forced migration was also because the Immortal World had issued a player kill order against them. The Cultivators had originally possessed an affluent social status, but because of the players, their social status had fallen again and again; even ascending meant becoming slaves to the Heavenly Humans. Each of them had long been filled with a belly of fire, urgently needing a war to vent it out.

Of course.

Better safe than sorry.

Cheng Xunyun would not sit idly by and watch the foundation Lin Bai had worked so hard to build be thrown away for nothing.

Through the various sect masters, she urged everyone to seize the time to find partners and trained everyone to form a Hand-in-Hand Chain in times of emergency.

After all, only by forming a Hand-in-Hand Chain could the Magpie Bridge send everyone away in an instant.

……

Lin Bai was refining his Skills; he split off a new divine sense and stuffed a Darkness Divinity into it.

Nowadays, Lin Bai had countless fans across various worlds, and the powerful Faith Power supplied different divinities without any incompatibility whatsoever.

Having implanted the divinity of the God of Darkness, the divine sense erupted with power even greater than that of the original God of Darkness.

Originally, under the sunlight, the divine sense would deplete very quickly, but with the Darkness Divinity and the attribute of being Undying and Indestructible bestowed upon it, the divine sense no longer feared the sunlight.

At least three Heavenly Kings were coming, but among Lin Bai's Puppets was the original God of Darkness, whose Divinity he shared; now he also had the divine sense version of the God of Darkness, and on top of that, the God of Curses.

Comparing them horizontally, the strength of both sides was about the same.

Added to the System Skills, Lin Bai believed he held the advantage, which was the reason he had the confidence to face the three Heavenly Kings directly.

……

"The Forest Goddess's elven army and the druids have gathered in the Teuton Forest, numbering about one hundred thousand; it will take about two days for them to reach us from the Teuton Forest."

"The Earth Goddess's Temple Legion has gathered in the Purple Canyon, also numbering about one hundred thousand; it will take three days from the Purple Canyon to reach us."

"The Undead Monarch's Undead Legion is gathering at the Ghost City, with numbers beyond counting."

……

Intelligence gathered by players flew onto Cheng Xunyun's desk like snowflakes.

Before her was a map of Shenmo Dalu. Cheng Xunyun frowned as she looked at the gathering points of the various legions marked on the map. After pondering for a moment, she called for Xiaobai, laid out a Magpie Bridge, and arrived directly by Lin Bai's side.

Xiaobai habitually turned back into a little fox and jumped into Lin Bai's arms.

Her growth rate was not fast. Although she held the title of Queen of the Demon Kingdom, most of the Demon Kingdom's affairs were handled by Cheng Xunyun. All Xiaobai could do was not cause trouble and transform into a pet to enjoy her master's affection.

"Husband, I have studied the history of Shenmo Dalu. Judging by the current situation, the various gods of Shenmo Dalu must have united." Cheng Xunyun spread the map out before Lin Bai. "However, they don't have a Magpie Bridge. Should we strike first and defeat them one by one?"

Lin Bai did not speak.

The God of Darkness beside him spoke instead: "The Earth Goddess and the Lord of the Abyss both possess the ability to teleport. No matter who we go to attack, we will suffer a siege from all the gods."

Cheng Xunyun was stunned.

Lin Bai shook a ruler in his hand and said, "The data obtained from the players was too scarce, so I found a way to persuade the God of Darkness and took him as a Disciple. Xiaoyun, you can call him Junior Brother."

The God of Darkness shivered violently, his eyes filled with terror as he looked at Lin Bai; clearly, the process by which Lin Bai persuaded him was not pleasant.

"Junior Brother?" Cheng Xunyun looked at the God of Darkness.

"Greetings, Senior Sister," the God of Darkness greeted obediently.

"The divinities of gods all have special functions; corresponding divinities can mobilize corresponding world rules," Lin Bai said. "The Earth God can teleport armies to any place with land, while the Lord of the Abyss can open portals across the world to send creatures from the Abyss over. The reason they haven't moved yet is likely because they are waiting for us to make a move. Once we move, I fear we will face a siege."

"……" Cheng Xunyun's expression changed. "So, we have to face the pincer attack of the Heavenly Kings and the local gods simultaneously?"

"No. The Abyss faction and the Earth Goddess faction are sworn enemies; the two sides do not get along. Everyone is likely waiting for the other to engage us first so they can profit from it, and the few Heavenly Kings are the same," Lin Bai laughed. "Every world has intricate and complex factions; how could they be an iron-clad whole?"

"Should we wait too?" Cheng Xunyun asked hesitantly.

"No need to wait. All the gods' legions have been mobilized; there is no reason to let them disperse. I have decided to go around to various places and see if I can facilitate a wedding," Lin Bai said.

"……" Cheng Xunyun was stunned. "Husband, are you going to cultivate the Love Dao again?"

"Something like that!" Lin Bai smiled at Cheng Xunyun and said, "Haven't you been letting them practice holding hands for the past two days? Build a Magpie Bridge and send everyone to the Real World! You are no longer needed here!"

"But those gods have gathered so many subordinates..." Xu Longyun said in surprise.

"That's right! The fish has already taken the bait; you wouldn't really let them swallow the bait, would you? Xiaoyun, it wasn't easy for me to accumulate some family assets; I can't let them be squandered so quickly." Lin Bai glanced at her and said, "The way of military strategy is about truth and falsehood; when real, feign emptiness, and when empty, feign reality. Next, it's time for my performance. Without you all, my mobility is greater, and I am more concealed."

"..." Xu Longyun was silent for a moment, then said, "Do we Disciples need to stay and help? After all, we also possess the Fazhe Zhidao."

"No need, the war between gods is not something you can participate in." Lin Bai put on his disguise glasses, and under Xu Longyun's gaze, he transformed into the appearance of the Thunder Heavenly King. Then, he took out another pair of glasses, placed them on Xu Longyun's face, hugged her gently, and said, "Go, leave transformed as me, go to the Real World, and use public opinion to build momentum for me."

A Magpie Bridge was erected to the Real World.

Before long, the Cultivators from the Xianxia World had all left, leaving behind a mess, as if they had made such a grand display just to go on a trip and see the scenery of the Shenmo Dalu.

After everyone had left, Lin Bai cut off the Magpie Bridge leading to the Real World, and the Shenmo Dalu became a lonely, isolated world.

"What's the situation? Why did they leave suddenly? Did Lin Bai leave too?"

"He did indeed leave; I saw with my own eyes the Magpie Bridge he erected, and he was the first to step onto it."

"That's right, Lin Bai has already appeared in the Real World. He went to the Parliament to meet with the God of Darkness of the Real World, and he also said that in three hours, he will hold a press conference to answer reporters' questions and address some issues regarding the future development of the three worlds."

"Why didn't he go directly to the Real World? Why did he have to come to the Shenmo Dalu to transfer? Isn't this just playing us for fools?"

"Maybe he was scared away! After all, no matter how strong he is, he cannot be the enemy of all the gods."

"He stirred up everyone's interest, but then he pulled up his pants and left; it's so disappointing."

"I heard that the Huo Tianwang and Shui Tianwang from the Immortal World, as well as the Gold King, all came to the Shenmo Dalu. Lin Bai cut off the Magpie Bridge; perhaps he wants to trap the Heavenly Kings in the Shenmo Dalu, borrow a knife to kill, and make them fight with the local gods! He played everyone."

"Sure enough, Lin Bai, who possesses the power to traverse worlds, could never die in battle."

"But his behavior is just like a cowardly rat. He doesn't dare to fight uprightly; he will never be able to conquer the worlds and become the King of Gods."

"The Heavenly Kings came for Lin Bai; how could they possibly fight the local gods?"

"Have you forgotten the Thunder Heavenly King? He once relied on his own strength to finish off the God of Darkness and even shattered his Darkness Divinity into six pieces..."

"Regardless, without the Magpie Bridge, they can't go back. If they want to go back, they can only do it like players—lose a level and respawn back? That would be a huge loss."

"Players from the Eastern Continent say that the Lingjie Fengxi can connect the Shenmo Dalu and the Xianxia World; they can go back through the Lingjie Fengxi..."

"That's just a guess."

"Meng Laoda, what do we do now? Lin Bai has slipped away!" The Huo Tianwang was wearing red armor and toying with a Scepter in his hand; the top of the Scepter was a cluster of seven-colored flames. After hearing the latest news about Lin Bai from the players, he was dumbfounded, his face full of astonishment.

"I told you earlier that Lin Bai is very cunning." The Thunder Heavenly King said gloomily, "He might just want to trap us in this world..."

"It doesn't look like Luring the Tiger off the Mountain. We have more people from the Immortal World; if he doesn't dare to fight us, would he dare to go to the Immortal World to fight the others?" The Shui Tianwang wore blue armor and floated above a cloud; his brows were slightly furrowed, and he looked like a melancholic, handsome man with a refined Temperament.

"Meng Laoda, if we had attacked immediately at that time, would we have been able to keep him?" The Thunder Heavenly King asked cautiously.

"I never fight a battle without preparation." Meng Laoda sat cross-legged, suspended in the air, eyes closed, appearing half-asleep, "To be able to seize the Thunder Hammer and erase the Thunder Skill, Lin Bai is definitely not as simple as you think. Caution is never wrong. The God of Darkness's Darkness Divinity was split into six parts; nine times out of ten, he did that too. Moreover, I have a feeling that Lin Bai has not left this world."

"That's impossible! We watched him leave with our own eyes." The Huo Tianwang said, "And he didn't erect another Magpie Bridge to leave the group, but there is no one left in the valley."

"Eyes can deceive." Meng Laoda said, "Looking at Lin Bai's growth history, every single thing he does has a payoff, including the last time he snatched the Hammer. This time, he made such a grand display just to trap us in the Shenmo Dalu; it doesn't fit his personality. Furthermore, the players' information is public; he couldn't possibly not know about the Boundary Break."

"The Lingjie Fengxi is just a theory. What's inside the rift? Can it lead to the Shenmo Dalu?" The Huo Tianwang said, "Meng Laoda, even if he is still in this world, we have lost his trail. What do we do next? Wait for him to come out?"

"Xiaojin has been in this world for so many days; where do you think he might be?" Meng Laoda asked.

"The world is so big, who knows where he ran off to?" The Huo Tianwang said, "It's a pity that our chat function doesn't work in this world, otherwise, we could just ask and find out."

"Xiaojin likes to investigate, and like the boss, he likes to plan before acting, so he wouldn't miss the chance to study Lin Bai and the gods of this world." The Shui Tianwang pondered for a moment, "These past few days, there haven't been any sensational battles, so the place where Xiaojin is most likely to appear is either the temples of the gods or he will go looking for the Darkness gods arranged by Lin Bai..."

"Let's go." Meng Laoda said.

"Where to?" The Thunder Heavenly King asked.

"The Darkness Palace." Meng Laoda said, "Lin Bai wouldn't make a useless move. We will start with the few pieces of Darkness Divinity he left behind and incidentally study what the Darkness Divinity is all about and whether it can be used by us."

"Right, right, I have fought the God of Darkness; the Darkness Divinity is very powerful. If I hadn't used the Thunder God's Descent, I almost wouldn't have been able to beat the God of Darkness." The Thunder Heavenly King said, "It's a pity I was backstabbed by Lin Bai, otherwise, the Darkness Divinity dropped by the God of Darkness would definitely have been mine."

"Thunder, you don't think Lin Bai's six pieces of Darkness Divinity were picked up from you, do you?" The Huo Tianwang laughed.

"Otherwise what? Is the Darkness Divinity that easy to shatter? Lin Bai has never shown any decent ultimate moves; they are all strange and disgusting tricks. Only my Thunder God's Descent could possibly shatter the Darkness Divinity." The Thunder Heavenly King said indignantly, "If you hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have remembered; that guy not only snatched my equipment but also snatched my BOSS..."

(End of this chapter)